The story began in August, when Armani gave birth to baby Alice. Male anteaters commonly commit infanticide, so Alf, the father, was removed from the enclosure. He has remained in a separate space since then, the Time reports.

The normal gestation time for an anteater is six months. Marcella Leone, founder and director of the conservation center, told the Times that the pregnancy and birth could have been a case of delayed implantation, when "fertilized eggs remain dormant in the uterus for a period of time."